12 Richest Harry Potter Actors 12 Richest Harry Potter Actors Share Comment With a worldwide gross of over seven billion dollars for the films alone (not counting the books, video games, merchandise, theme parks, etc.), it’s no wonder that the stars of the Harry Potter series have made quite a lot of cash. With hundreds of actors appearing throughout the series’ eight films, there are many who could compete for the spot of richest Harry Potter actor. However, not everyone made the cut. Here are the 12 actors who have the highest net worths out of all of the series’ performers. Note: These are the net worths of the actors from the entirety of their career, not just the Harry Potter series. Therefore, you may see some surprises on this list. 12. $16 million: Maggie Smith (Professor Minerva McGonagall) With a career as prolific as Maggie Smith’s, it’s no wonder that she has racked up quite a net worth. Smith has appeared in over 60 films, in addition to her popular television role as the Dowager Countess Violet Crawley on Downton Abbey .

Smith has also been nominated for six Oscars, winning two — one for her supporting role in California Suite and another for her leading role in The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. In the Harry Potter series, Smith portrayed Professor Minerva McGonagall in seven of the eight films, a role for which she was nominated for a Best Supporting Actress Saturn Award in 2002. The only film that she did not appear in was Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1. 11. $20 million: John Hurt (Ollivander) Although Hurt’s role as Ollivander in the Harry Potter series was fairly small (he only appeared in three of the films— Sorcerer’s Stone and Deathly Hallows Parts 1 and 2; he had a small role in Goblet of Fire, but it was cut out), the actor’s long career has allowed him to accumulate a $20 million net worth. Hurt, who launched his career by acting in the Thomas More-biopic A Man for All Seasons, has been nominated for two Oscars, one for his supporting role in Midnight Express and another for his leading role in The Elephant Man.

Additionally, he lent his voice to all five seasons of the fantasy series Merlin and has appeared in popular films like V for Vendetta, Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy and Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull . 10. $30 million: Ralph Fiennes (Voldemort) It may be hard to recognize Ralph Fiennes with a nose on his face, but the actor has had quite the career, appearing in the last two James Bond films ( Skyfall and Spectre ), Clash of the Titans and The Grand Budapest Hotel . With an apparent passion for playing villains, Fiennes also starred as the evil Amon Goeth in Schindler’s List , a role which earned him one of his two Oscar nominations (the other for his role in The English Patient). In the Harry Potter universe, Fiennes appeared as Voldemort in five of the eight films. However, he is not the only actor to have ever played the role.

Christian Coulson, Frank Dillane and Hero Fiennes Tiffin have all played younger versions of Tom Riddle, while Ian Hart (who also played Professor Quirrell) voiced the character in Sorcerer’s Stone, and Richard Bremmer played the character in the Sorcerer’s Stone flashbacks and provided some of the voice parts in Goblet of Fire. But in our hearts, The Dark Lord will always be Mr. Fiennes. 9. $30 million: Helena Bonham Carter (Bellatrix Lestrange) As a noted character actress, Bonham Carter has racked up over 80 credits during her 23-year career. Two of her most notable appearances, in The King’s Speech and The Wings of the Dove, earned her Oscar nominations, while she has also picked up Golden Globe nominations for Burton and Taylor, Sweeney Todd: The Demon Barber of Fleet Street , Live from Baghdad, Merlin and Fatal Deception: Mrs. Lee Harvey Oswald. She’s also appeared in a number of films directed by her frequent collaborator and ex-partner Tim Burton, like Planet of the Apes , Charlie and the Chocolate Factory , Alice in Wonderland and more. Bonham Carter’s character Bellatrix appeared in the final four Harry Potter films.

Helen McCrory was originally cast in the role, but had to drop out when she became pregnant. McCrory ended up returning to the series later, playing Narcissa Malfoy. 8. $35 million: Tom Felton (Draco Malfoy) Felton pulled in a good chunk of change appearing as the villainous Draco Malfoy throughout all eight of the Harry Potter films. However, Felton was working even before Harry Potter, appearing in commercials and in the John Goodman-helmed The Borrowers. Since Harry Potter, Felton has been getting into music, writing and playing his own songs on the guitar. Felton co-founded Six String Productions, a record company with the goal of fostering new talent in the music industry. In addition, Felton appeared in 2011’s Rise of the Planet of the Apes , starring James Franco and Freida Pinto, and is slated to be in the drama A United Kingdom opposite Rosamund Pike, as well as the thriller Message from the King, with Teresa Palmer and Chadwick Boseman. 7.

$40 million: Gary Oldman (Sirius Black) It’s no surprise that in his 24-year career, Oldman has racked up a $40 million net worth. The actor is a staple of another famous franchise, appearing as Commissioner Gordon in the Christian Bale-era Batman films, in addition to picking up kookier roles like Rosencrantz in Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead and meaty villainous roles like Ivan Korshunov in Air Force One . He also earned an Oscar nomination for his 2012 role in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy, appearing with Harry Potter co-stars John Hurt and Toby Jones, who played Dobby in the films. Oldman appeared in four of the Harry Potter films, although his appearance in Deathly Hallows: Part 2 was limited to a brief ghostly appearance. 6. $45 million: Emma Thompson (Professor Sybil Trelawney) Thompson has had an incredibly successful career in the film industry. She has won two Oscars, one for her leading role in Howards End and one for best adapted screenplay for her writing of Sense and Sensibility.

She has also been nominated for three others: best supporting actress for In the Name of the Father and best leading actress for The Remains of the Day (both in the same year, 1994, making her one of only eight actresses to appear in both categories at once) and one for actress in a leading role in Sense and Sensibility. In addition to these roles, Thompson has continued to make a name for herself as both a performer and a writer, penning and starring in the Nanny McPhee series, the TV movie Wit and drama Effie Gray. Thompson also appeared as Professor Trelawney in three of the eight Harry Potter films, of course. 5. $50 million: Rupert Grint (Ron Weasley) Although Grint has earned the least out of the main trio, he’s still pulled in quite a lot of his cash from his role as the bumbling Ron Weasley. The actor was also able to pick up some extra money starring in the comedy Thunderpants and indie films Driving Lessons, Cherrybomb and Wild Target during Harry Potter filming. Since Harry Potter, Grint has mostly stuck to appearing in indie films like Into the White and CBGB.

He also lent his voice to The Unbeatables and Postman Pat: The Movie, as well as appearing in Ed Sheeran’s music video for Lego House and filming the CBS pilot Super Clyde , which was not picked up. Although Grint was originally slated to appear in the lead role Eddie Edwards in the recently released biopic Eddie the Eagle , due to budgetary and production issues, the film was redone with Taron Egerton playing the titular role. In October, Grint announced that he would be filming a superhero pilot for NBC called Imperial City, about a comic book-obsessed character (also named Rupert) who finds out that the world of his favorite series is real. The drama has a put-pilot order. 4. $55 million: Kenneth Branagh (Professor Gilderoy Lockhart) Although Branagh only appeared as the vain Professor Lockhart in one Harry Potter film, the actor, director and screenwriter still has an impressive resume.

With five Oscar nominations under his belt (best director and best actor in a leading role for Henry V; best live action short film for Swan Song; best adapted screenplay for Hamlet; and best supporting actor for My Week with Marilyn ), Branagh’s varied talents have allowed him to rack up a $55 million net worth. Aside from his work acting in films like Pirate Radio, Valkyrie and Jack Ryan: Shadow Recruit, Branagh is also a prolific writer and director famous for his Shakespeare adaptations, including Much Ado About Nothing, Hamlet and As You Like It. Branagh also directed 2011’s Thor and 2015’s Cinderella , and is slated to direct the upcoming adaption of Eoin Colfer’s book series Artemis Fowl . 3. $70 million: Emma Watson (Hermione Granger) Watson has embodied the spirit of Hermione Granger through her varied career, using her acting fame to gain a role as the UN Women’s Goodwill Ambassador and starting the HeForShe campaign for gender equality. Watson also graduated from Brown University with a degree in English literature.

Aside from starring in all eight Harry Potter films, Watson has also notably appeared in The Perks of Being a Wallflower , The Bling Ring and Noah . Although she has announced that she will take a year off from acting in 2016, she is also set to appear as the title role in the upcoming live-action adaptation of Beauty and the Beast , opposite Dan Stevens as the Beast — and yes, she will be singing. Her former Harry Potter co-star, Emma Thompson, will also appear in the film, as Mrs. Potts. 2. $100 million: Robert Pattinson (Cedric Diggory) Although Pattinson did appear in Goblet of Fire as the ill-fated Cedric Diggory, most of his fame (and cash) comes from his starring role as Edward Cullen in The Twilight Saga . Together, the five vampire love story films in the series have made over $3 billion; a small chunk of change compared to Harry Potter’s seven billion, but still quite a lot.

Outside of Harry Potter and Twilight, Pattinson has also starred in the drama Cosmopolis with Paul Giamatti, the romance Remember Me with Lost ’s Emilie de Ravin, and opposite Reese Witherspoon in the book adaptation Water for Elephants . Pattinson also plays his own music, writing songs and playing the guitar and piano. Two of his songs were featured in Twilight, and they have also been featured in the Pattinson-starring comedy How to Be. 1. $110 million: Daniel Radcliffe (Harry Potter) Of course the Boy Who Lived was going to top the list. At just 26, Radcliffe has managed to earn more than any of the more established actors from the series, using his turn as the star of the franchise to spur a successful theater and film career. Radcliffe started his post-Harry Potter career in the horror film The Woman in Black . He took to the horror genre, also starring in Horns and Victor Frankenstein , with an upcoming appearance scheduled for the thriller, Imperium. He also starred as poet Allen Ginsberg in the biopic Kill Your Darlings and as a romantic interest for Zoe Kazan in The F Word.

He will appear in the upcoming Now You See Me 2 . Radcliffe has also found success on Broadway, beginning with his appearance as the lead in Equus, for which he received a Drama Desk Award nomination. He also starred in the revival of How to Succeed in Business Without Really Trying, leading to another Drama Desk nomination, and most recently in The Cripple of Inishmaan, a dark comedy from Martin McDonagh of In Bruges and Seven Psychopaths . Clearly, Harry Potter has got a long career ahead of him. — Whose bank account did you find to be the most shocking? Which former Potter stars would you like to see more of? Sound off in the comments section.

Gary Oldman - Biography - IMDb Gary Oldman Biography Showing all 125 items Jump to: Overview (4) | Mini Bio (1) | Spouse (4) | Trade Mark (5) | Trivia (49) | Personal Quotes (59) | Salary (3) Overview (4) 5' 8½" (1.74 m) Mini Bio (1) Gary Oldman is a talented British born movie actor who played Sid Vicious in Sid & Nancy, Drexl in True Romance, and George Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy. He starred in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and the remake of RoboCop. He is also an English filmmaker, musician and author. Renowned for his "big" acting style, Oldman is one of the most celebrated thespians of his generation, with a diverse career encompassing theatre, film and television. Gary Oldman was born on March 21, 1958 in New Cross, London, England, the son of Kathleen (Cheriton), a homemaker, and Leonard Bertram Oldman, a welder.

For most of his career he was best-known for playing over-the-top antagonists such as the role of Russian terrorist Egor Korshunov in the 1997 blockbuster Air Force One, though he has recently reached a new audience with heroic roles in the Harry Potter and Dark Knight franchises. In amazing trivia, he was in Batman Begins and The Fifth Element. Oldman won a scholarship to Britain's Rose Bruford Drama College, in Sidcup, Kent, where he received a B.A. in theatre arts in 1979. He subsequently studied with the Greenwich Young People's Theatre and went on to appear in a number of plays throughout the early '80s, including "The Pope's Wedding," for which he received Time Out's Fringe Award for Best Newcomer of 1985-1986 and the British Theatre Association's Drama Magazine Award as Best Actor for 1985. Before fame, he was employed as a worker in assembly lines, and as a porter in an operating theater. He also got jobs selling shoes and beheading pigs while supporting his early acting career. He was also in the movie The Dark Knight with Heath Ledger.

His film debut was Remembrance (1982), though his most-memorable early role came when he played Sex Pistol Sid Vicious in the biopic Sid and Nancy (1986) picking up the Evening Standard Film Award as Best Newcomer. He then received a Best Actor nomination from BAFTA for his portrayal of '60s playwright Joe Orton in Prick Up Your Ears (1987). In the 1990s, Oldman brought to life a series of iconic real-world and fictional villains including Lee Harvey Oswald in JFK (1991), the title character in Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), Drexl Spivey in True Romance (1993), Stansfield in Léon: The Professional (1994), Jean-Baptiste Emanuel Zorg in The Fifth Element (1997) and Ivan Korshunov in Air Force One (1997). That decade also saw Oldman portraying Ludwig van Beethoven in biopic Immortal Beloved (1994).

Oldman scored the coveted role of Sirius Black in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), giving him a key part in one of the highest-grossing franchises ever. He reprised that role in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007). Oldman also took on the iconic role of Detective James Gordon in writer-director Christopher Nolan 's Batman Begins (2005), a role he played again in The Dark Knight (2008) and The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Prominent film critic Mark Kermode, in reviewing The Dark Knight, wrote, "the best performance in the film, by a mile, is Gary Oldman's ... it would be lovely to see him get a[n Academy Award] nomination because actually, he's the guy who gets kind of overlooked in all of this." Oldman co-starred with Jim Carrey in the 2009 version of A Christmas Carol in which Oldman played three roles. He had a starring role in David Goyer's supernatural thriller The Unborn, released in 2009.

In 2010, Oldman co-starred with Denzel Washington in The Book of Eli. He also played a lead role in Catherine Hardwicke's Red Riding Hood. Oldman voiced the role of villain Lord Shen and was nominated for an Annie Award for his performance in Kung Fu Panda 2. In 2011, Oldman portrayed master spy George Smiley in the adaptation of John le Carré 's Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), and the role scored Oldman his first Academy Award nomination. In 2014, he played one of the lead humans in the science fiction action film Dawn of the Planet of the Apes (2014). Also in 2014, Oldman starred alongside Joel Kinnaman, Abbie Cornish, Michael Keaton, and Samuel L. Jackson in the remake of RoboCop (2014), as Norton, the scientist who creates RoboCop. Also that year, Oldman starred in Dawn of the Planet of the Apes as one of the leads alongside Jason Clarke and Keri Russell. Aside from acting, Oldman tried his hand at writing and directing for Nil by Mouth (1997).

The movie opened the Cannes Film Festival in 1997, and won Kathy Burke a Best Actress prize at the festival. Oldman has three children - one with first wife Lesley Manville , and two with third wife Donya Fiorentino . He married Alexandra Edenborough on December 31, 2008 until they divorced in January 2015. He was married to actress Uma Thurman from 1990 to 1992. He married his fourth wife Alexandra Edenborough in 2008 but the couple divorced in 2015. He has three sons named Alfie, Gulliver and Charlie. (1987 - 1990) (divorced) (1 child) Trade Mark (5) Characters are usually borderline psychotics. Also known for playing a wide variety of roles that often requires a variety of different accents. His ability to change his appearance and voice to make every character unique Often plays reluctant Heroes who assist the main character Often plays real-life individuals or iconic fictional characters Ability to mimic different voices and accents with perfection Trivia (49) Considered a career in music.

Has one son, Alfie Oldman , born in 1988, from his first marriage to Lesley Manville . Sons, with Donya Fiorentino : Gulliver Flynn Oldman, born 20 August 1997 and Charlie John, born 11 February 1999. On 8 August 1991, he was arrested for drunk driving in L.A. and released on bail the next morning. His passenger in the car was pal, Kiefer Sutherland . His library includes essays on Bertolt Brecht , poetry by Roger McGough , a biography of Montgomery Clift , The Elizabethan World Picture, all things William Shakespeare and Jane Austen . Has used a different speaking voice (i.e. accent) in practically every movie he's ever been in.

He and Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004) and Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) co-star Timothy Spall have both played the character of Rosencrantz; Spall in Kenneth Branagh 's Hamlet (1996), Oldman in Rosencrantz & Guildenstern Are Dead (1990). He was awarded the 1985 London Critics Circle Theatre Award (Drama Theatre Award) for Best Actor for his performance in "The Pope's Wedding". Has played Lee Harvey Oswald in both JFK (1991) and Frontline: Who Was Lee Harvey Oswald? (1993). His film Nil by Mouth (1997) is loosely based upon his own life growing up in London. Submitted a recorded voice audition for General Grievous in Star Wars: Episode III - Revenge of the Sith (2005). George Lucas later chose the anonymous audition of Matthew Wood for the role instead. Henry & June (1990) is the only film in which he's been credited as "Maurice Escargot".

Appears in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005) and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007) with Ralph Fiennes . Both of them have played villains in the Hannibal Lecter series: Fiennes played Francis Dolarhyde in Red Dragon (2002), and Oldman played Mason Verger in Hannibal (2001). Member of jury at the Cannes Film Festival in 1993. Graduated from Rose Bruford Drama College 3 year acting course BA-Hons, London, England. In two movies, his characters have had dynamic relationships with mob bosses named Falcone. In Romeo Is Bleeding (1993), he was working FOR Don Falcone, and in Batman Begins (2005), he was working to bring down Carmine Falcone. In both instances, his character was a cop.

Although he has spent much of his career playing psychotic and sadistic characters, he has recently moved away from that on-screen image by playing more likeable, sympathetic characters like Sirius Black (in Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004), Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (2005), and Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (2007)) and Jim Gordon (in Batman Begins (2005)). He and his ex-wife, Uma Thurman , have both appeared in Batman films. Thurman played Poison Ivy in Batman & Robin (1997), and Oldman played James Gordon in Batman Begins (2005). Uncle of Gerry Bromfield and Tracy Bromfield. His performance as Sid Vicious in Sid and Nancy (1986) is ranked #62 on Premiere Magazine's 100 Greatest Performances of All Time (2006). Trained at Rose Bruford Drama School Sidcup, Kent. Other actors who trained there include Freddie Jones , Ray Fearon , Tom Baker and Stephen Armourae . Spokesperson for Nokia.

Performed a vocal duet with David Bowie for the song "You've Been Around" on the 1995 album "The Sacred Squall of Now" by longtime Bowie guitarist Reeves Gabrels . He is also featured on the song "Stamford Hill" on the same album. Has been an inspiration to many actors including up and comers Michael Fassbender , Bo Barrett , Ryan Gosling , Shia LaBeouf , Chris Kato , and Kaili Thorne . Is very close to actor and co-star in the Harry Potter franchise Daniel Radcliffe . His sister Laila Morse plays the character "Big Mo" in the British soap opera EastEnders (1985). Chosen by Empire magazine as one of the 100 Sexiest Stars in film history (#72). [2007]. Harry Potter co-actor Jason Isaacs lists him as one of his favorite actors. Lives in Los Angeles. Directed a music video for Jewish Hip-Hop group Chutzpah shot entirely on Nokia Cell Phones.

Actress Juliet Landau directed a 25 minute documentary - Take Flight: Gary Oldman Directs Chutzpah (2009) - about the making of the music video. Attended the Greenwich and Lewisham Young Peoples Theatre in South East London before going to drama school. Other former attendees are actors Kathy Burke , Stephen Manwaring and Stella Barnes. Actors Tom Hardy and Alexander Skarsgård have named Oldman as their favorite actor. In 2011, he named his five favorite films as Apocalypse Now (1979), The Conversation (1974), The Godfather: Part II (1974), Badlands (1973) and Ratcatcher (1999) and cites his director from Bram Stoker's Dracula (1992), Francis Ford Coppola , as his favorite filmmaker. Is the second actor to be nominated for a Best Actor Oscar for playing a lead character in a John le Carré novel adaptation. This first was Richard Burton for "The Spy Who Came in from the Cold," which featured George Smiley. Friends with Benedict Cumberbatch .

Was famously told by the Royal Academy of Dramatic Arts (RADA) to find a new career other than acting before training at Rose Bruford. Received the scar below his right eye during a rehearsal for Meantime (1984) , where Tim Roth threw a bottle that hit a light and fell on Oldman. Before his nod for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011), he was considered one of the greatest actors never nominated for an Oscar. Director Patrice Chéreau originally wanted him for the lead role in Intimacy (2001), but he turned it down because of the sex scenes. Is the third actor to be nominated for an Oscar for playing a role in a John le Carré novel adaptation. The others were Richard Burton for The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1965) and Rachel Weisz who won the award for her performance in The Constant Gardener (2005). Filmed a role in The Thin Red Line (1998) but all his scenes were deleted from the final cut. In Chicago, Illinois filming The Dark Knight (2008).

[August 2007] He is of English, with a smaller amount of Irish, ancestry. Used to work various jobs on assembly lines, as a porter in an operating theatre, selling shoes and beheading pigs in an abattoir. Auditioned for Royal Academy Of Dramatic Arts (RADA) but was rejected and told by advisers that he should consider something besides acting. As of July 2014, films starring Oldman have grossed over $3.8 billion at the United States box office, and over $9.9 billion worldwide. In 2012, The Hollywood Reporter named Oldman the highest-grossing actor in history, based on lead and supporting roles. Starred in David Bowie 's music video David Bowie: The Next Day (2013) alongside Marion Cotillard , his co-star in The Dark Knight Rises (2012). Actors Tom Hardy and Joseph Gordon Levitt has citied Oldman as their inspiration. Personal Quotes (59) I don't think Hollywood knows what to do with me. I would imagine that when it comes to romantic comedies, my name would be pretty low down on the list.

We're given a code to live our lives by. We don't always follow it but it's still there. [on portraying famous people]: It's a double-edged sword because, in one sense, you have a lot of material to work with, but in a strange kind of way, that puts up a framework that you have to keep within. You can't play Beethoven with pink hair but, to an extent, because no-one has ever met him, who's going to tell me that's not Beethoven? With Beethoven [ Immortal Beloved (1994)] I said I wanted a role where I didn't have to do anything stupid with my hair. My agent said "Read it again!". [on making Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (2004)]: I've done so much R-rated work, it's nice to have a job you can show your kids. I had this idea of myself as a shy, kind, sweet chap. I was working with Winona Ryder and she turned to me and said, "Fuck, man, you're really intense!" I was so shocked, I went, "What do you mean?

I'm not intense, I'm sweet!" My passion and energy get mistaken for anger. I guess what I'm trying to say is, it's not Dracula crying, it's Gary Oldman, but using the technique of the character. The emotion is mine, because I don't know what it's like to be undead and live 300 years. Any actor who tells you that they have become the people they play, unless they're clearly diagnosed as a schizophrenic, is bullshitting you. I used to be under the impression that in some kind of wanky, bullshit way, acting was like therapy: you get in and grapple with and exorcise all those demons inside of you. I don't believe that anymore. It's like a snow shaker. You shake the thing up, but it can't escape the glass. It can't get out. And it will settle until the next time you shake it up. [on the shooting for his writing/directing debut Nil by Mouth (1997)]: I set aside three weeks for rehearsals. Those long scenes are like a play. But I wanted things loosely structured, more like jazz.

Though there was very little improv on screen, sometimes we'd improvise, rev up, to get the energy before shooting. One rule that I broke was that you need to leave a little air between people's lines, that you can't overlap dialogue because you'll clip words on a cut. But you can overlap dialogue, even though editors don't like it. Otherwise, it's your turn to talk, my turn. Another thing: I used only one camera! I'd say to the cameraman, "I need it from this angle!" From my brief association with Isabella Rossellini , I got a new appreciation of Pier Paolo Pasolini and how he was religious about where the camera should go, whether it was too high, too low. I would ask questions on the set, quietly: "For this emotion, is the camera angle too wide, is the camera too low?" I wanted night to look like night! I bullied the cameraman a bit until he got into the swing. You could pick up the light metre and say, seeing how little light, "You've got to be fucking joking!" Change is vital to any actor. If you keep playing lead after lead, you're really gonna dry up.

Because all those vehicles wean you away from the truths of human behaviour. There's an uncanny thing that chemically happens to you when you're in the chronic stages of alcoholic drinking. I have been able, on occasions, to have two bottles of vodka and still be up talking to people. That got very frightening. By nature I'm an isolationalist, so my boozing was at home, thank you. I was not a goer-outer. I mean, I didn't drink for the taste and I didn't want to be social. Someone once described alcoholics as egomaniacs with low self-esteem. Perfect definition. To be able to do this job in the first place you've got to have a bit of an ego. I applaud anything that can take a kid away from a PlayStation or a Gameboy. That is a miracle in itself. I suddenly got obsessive about boxing and Muhammad Ali around the time he was fighting Joe Frazier . I went off and did boxing. I looked incredibly good in the gym. [on True Romance (1993)] I organized Drexl's dreadlocks under my own steam. Then I went to the dentist who made the teeth. Then I thought about the weird eye.

I'm only in the film for about 10 minutes - I wanted to make my mark. [on True Romance (1993)] I hadn't read the script, and knew nothing about it. Tony Scott and I had tea at the Four Seasons and he said, 'Look, I can't really explain the plot. But Drexl's a pimp who's white but thinks he's black'. That was all I needed to hear. I said, 'Yes, I'll do it'. [2008] There are roles that you play. I've played roles that it happens easier than others, it doesn't feel like you're working, it's as easy as breathing. And there are other ones that you really have to work hard for. It's often because of the writing. Being an actor is a good way to earn a living. And to meet fabulous people. It's great to live very comfortably. I've been lucky, I've had a lot of fun with great roles, but it is true that if I were extremely rich, I would stop and I would go to play football on a beach in the Caribbean with my children.

(2004) [SAG acceptance speech on behalf of Heath Ledger] Heath Ledger was an extraordinary young man with an extraordinary talent. [on James Stewart ] He's almost too tall to be a star in a strange kind of way. He's too skinny and he's got this really strange voice when he talked and you just think this shouldn't work. He's not Humphrey Bogart , he's not Edward G. Robinson , he's not James Cagney and yet somehow it's magic. [on filming Murder in the First (1995) when the 1994 Northridge earthquake hit] I was thrown against the wall and I was actually under the door frame, which is where you are supposed to be, but the door frame was the set, and there I am, holding on to props. I'm holding on to cardboard, and I can still smell the glue that's drying. [1998] If you see me in Air Force One (1997), then you see Nil by Mouth (1997), you get a pretty good idea of what I did with the cash. It does fit together, in a crazy way. There are two Garys that are operating.

I'm out there looking for a good role, primarily. But I'm looking for a good price tag, so it would buy me freedom. But there's also the other Gary, who thinks he's wasting his time doing it. There are other things I should be doing. I shouldn't be struggling on a movie set trying to utter some unutterable piece of junk, when I could be playing Iago on the stage, or Hamlet. "Nil By Mouth" is representative of who I am as an artist and what I'm about. But when you play those great parts, and you say those great lines every night--you can't do Shakespeare eight shows a week for six months and not come out a better, more enriched person for it. You can't have understanding and poetry in your mouth and not have your life unfettered by it. I'm certainly going to get a lot more from it than saying, "Mr. President, get your hands up!" [1998] I loved America when I first came in '81. I moved to New York and I said, "I'm home.

This is my town." I'm not one of those Brits that goes to the English pub and plays cricket under the Hollywood sign. I really immersed myself in the culture. And I work in the industry as an American. I have a fantastic ear, and I'm a great people watcher. [1998, on quitting drinking] There was a day--well, not a day; there was never just a day. There were three-day, four-day, one-week benders. You'd come out of a five-day run of mind-stoking consumption. Mind-stroking. And I would come out the end of it, and "Just this one time...." There were no excuses anymore. That was it. I just read this book, Drinking, A Love Story. There's not a sentence or a page I can't read without going, Yeah. Very simply, you have to live life on life's terms. There is no buffer anymore. You feel the feelings. You experience the experience. Sometimes that can be thrilling and wonderful. It's like the focus pullers--you finally see the image very sharp: "Ah, there it is." I used to--life was sort of a blur of massive color.

But I'm still working on all of that, yeah. Like I said, there were just no more excuses. "Hey, the sun's shining! Let's have a martini! Hey, it's raining; let's have a bottle of whiskey. I'm happy; let's celebrate. I'm sad; let's drink." [1990, on his role in Criminal Law (1988)] I've got nothing in common with 'Ben Chase'. That's why it seemed like a good idea to take the part. It was my first opportunity to ever play a leading man, in the true sense. And, yeah, it was fun. I'm not going to pretend - I can't pretend - it's a work of art. [1990, on State of Grace (1990)] It's the best thing I've ever done. Ever. Ever. We could do 20 or 30 takes - do it until we got it right. I'm not saying you always need that for it all to gel and be brilliant, but it lets you forget about the finance and just fly.

On something like Prick Up Your Ears (1987) you had to get it in one or two takes. Because those kind of movies - British movies - are made for very little money. [2001, on if he was bothered by not getting an Oscar nomination for The Contender (2000), which many thought he would] I cared, yes. An Oscar would have been nice - it would have got me closer to what I want to do, which is make more films. But I didn't care for very long. The nominations come and if you're not on the list you go, "Oh well," like I've done a lot of times before. [2001, on his gift with accents] I can do a rough approximation of virtually any accent. I've always done them; as a kid I used to do the Beatles as a party piece. When I was with the Royal Court Theatre we used to piss around and people would say, "I bet you can't do Zimbabwe," so I did it. The accent on The Contender (2000) - Illinois - was the hardest I ever had to do, because there's no melody to catch on to.

Most accents have a music to them, but Illinois is a very flat, unimaginative thing. [1997, on quitting drinking] I did a lot of stupid things. When you're drunk, you think you can pull any bird in the room and they'll just love the idea of it. You also think you can say anything you like to anybody without them taking offense. Actually, you need the sauce to fill whatever hole that's there in yourself. And, believe it or not, I was always a bit shy and retiring really. Honest. But a lot of the time, I wasn't partying. I was drinking alone, which is worse, it's often solitary and desperate. I got to the point where I was sick and tired of being sick and tired. I talked on the phone when it wasn't plugged in, and I was getting out of bed, crawling across the floor on my hands and knees, vomiting in the shower and blaming it on the shampoo. You name it, I've probably been there. And back again.

[1997, on the paparazzi] I once had dinner with Brad Pitt at the Ivy in London and when we came out of the restaurant we were surrounded by hoards of photographers waiting for him not me. We had to drive off like the clappers with them chasing. And they were chasing us right through the red lights. It was like the Grand Prix going through the center of London. I couldn't believe it. [1997, on Nil by Mouth (1997)] To be very honest with you, these lucrative villains subsidize the more personal stuff. Air Force One (1997)'s not a movie I'd particularly want to go and see myself, it's just not my cup of tea. But I'm lucky that I have this lucrative second career. I'm getting older, I'm nearly 40 and I've got responsibilities and a family. I've got to put food on the table and pay the mortgage like everybody else.

If I want to take time away from the marketplace as an actor, and take two years out of my life to go off and do something like this that I feel very passionate about, I have to go and do a movie like "Air Force One" that buys me freedom, as cynical as that sounds. [1990] With Sid and Nancy (1986), I'd never really liked the script. It put me off cause I think it was a rather inarticulate, monosyllabic, banal kind of generation of people. I liked that particular idea (director) Alex Cox had developed, to do a love story about Sid Vicious and Nancy Spungen . But that was about all it had going for it. In terms of dialogue, it was quite terrible. And I think we did a good job of lifting some of that off the page and making it work. Acting is a passion, I'm obsessed. It drives my girlfriend mad cause I'm so self obsessed. I don't want any stone left unturned. I wanted to be Sid Vicious, I didn't want to play him. But there are two scenes I'm happy with a couple of scenes that maybe worked, I never enjoyed the film.

[1990] I made the decision not to always play the token Englishman. I think the real juicy roles in my generation are going to go to the American actors. [1990, on preparing for his role in State of Grace (1990)] The only research I did was drinking in Irish bars. [1987, on losing 45 pounds to play Sid Vicious ] I was obsessed with being really, really, really, skinny. I thought, this is the visual image I want to present, I want this before I do anything else. [on his character George Smiley from Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)] George is a man of few words. He doesn't need the karate and the fast car and the gun. That's what makes George dangerous, is the fact that he does blend in and he disappears. He's the one to watch. He's the leopard camouflaged by the jungle, ready to pounce, so its nice to play someone like that. He operates from a very unseemly passive position. Britain has always had spies and I think we've spied rather well.

But we have a rather romantic view of it and [ John le Carré ] was the first to really show the reality. He told me that you would be given an assignment and go to Russia or to Czechoslovakia. You would be sent to watch someone. You would be in some miserable little room with a fake ID, and it would be very lonely and often very boring. He said that the terror of having your cover blown was exhausting: you were always waiting for the footsteps on the stairs. I guess that's why so many of them hit the bottle. I didn't do drugs. It wasn't my thing. But the drink was terrible. Today when I look back, it's like I was another person. You could call it a coping mechanism, but that would be an excuse. I just drank too much. [on Sid and Nancy (1986)] I was never really that interested in the punk movement. I was a blues guy: I liked Motown, James Brown . I read the script and thought it was a load of rubbish. But my agent said, "They're offering £35,000".

I was getting £80 a week at the Royal Court at the time and I thought "I could do with a flat", it changed my life overnight. [on receiving an Oscar nomination for Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011)] One of my career ambitions was fulfilled working with John Hurt . I loved his work long before I ever had the idea of being an actor, so I was nervous to meet him. I was like a fanboy, like that annoying character on 'Saturday Night Live'. I'm sitting there. 'Do you remember when you were in Midnight Express (1978)? Remember that scene you were in?' And he doesn't disappoint. [on why George Smiley is the role of a lifetime] Well, first of all, it's a role that's all subtext, it's all inside, it's all going on but you're not necessarily expressing it. It's an iconic part, it's just a wonderful leading role and it's the sort of role that one, in a career, dreams about. It's a role that will come along once or twice.

If you look at any of those great parts, for instance, you take someone like Daniel Day Lewis -- who I think, any way you slice it, is a genius actor. But look at Daniel Plainview (Lewis's character in There Will Be Blood (2007)). How often do you get a Daniel Plainview? [Robert] De Niro has some incredible roles, but one does think of Travis Bickle in Taxi Driver (1976). It's hard to top them. So this kind of role -- and when I say this kind of role, I usually play extrovert characters -- this role is also very quiet, it's subdued, it requires a different kind of thing, it's a minimalist performance in that sense. It's a "please don't ask me to bounce off the walls anymore," you know what I mean? I've been waiting for it. [on the two versions of 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy'] I got from the book that there's a little bit of a sadist in George Smiley and, if anything, (Alec) Guinness' was a little more huggable than mine.

Clint Eastwood gave me the best advice when I directed: 'Get more sleep than your actors.' I don't remember doing Sid and Nancy (1986). I've wiped that from the hard drive. [on Sin (2003)] Oh God, that's possibly the worst movie ever made. I even felt sorry for the trees they cut down for the script paper. I hadn't worked, I needed some money after the divorce (from Donya Fiorentino in 2001). If you're a connoisseur of the terrible, you might get a twisted joy out of it. I'm 56 now, and if you've managed to work as long as I have, you understand that these roles everyone fusses over are your career; they're not your life. It's just a job, really. You have financial responsibilities, you have children, you have all those things all the regular people have. Honestly, I forget I'm an actor until I'm reminded.

It was the most thrilling experience watching myself for the first time in JFK (1991), for example, because I couldn't believe I was in it - Oliver Stone at the very height of his powers, the sheer energy of it all, his commitment. When I saw the finished product I had to pinch myself. I thought, Wow, I'm in this movie. This is terrific. I'm trying to give my sons an education about movies as well. You sit there and watch a comedy, let's say Meet the Fockers (2004), and it's Robert De Niro . You tell them this guy was at one time considered the greatest living actor. My boys look at me and say, "Really? This guy? He's a middle-aged dad." So what I've tried to do recently is introduce them one by one to the great movies of the 1970s - The Godfather (1972), Mean Streets (1973), The Deer Hunter (1978), Dog Day Afternoon (1975), the work of Lindsay Anderson , Francis Ford Coppola , Martin Scorsese , Gene Hackman , Al Pacino , John Cazale , Peter Sellers .

I try to give them a sense of what cinema used to be like rather than just these tent-pole movies that come and go on demand within five minutes. Don't get me wrong; there are directors I would still want to work with - Wes Anderson , Paul Thomas Anderson . I've never worked with Todd Haynes . I love John Sayles . I've never worked with Scorsese. A great director is a great artist. [on Air Force One (1997)] That movie had some enjoyable moments. I remember the flight deck was on a sound stage and there was a big sign that said "No Drinking, No Smoking and No Eating On Set." At one point I looked over and [ Harrison Ford ] was in the doorway beneath the sign with a burrito, a cigar and a cup of coffee, which I thought was hilarious. I could never get the image out of my head. Nowadays we would take out an iPhone and post something like that on Instagram. There's a lot of rubbish talked about acting, and it's often propagated by practitioners of it. You just want to say, "Oh, shut up." I just think political correctness is crap. That's what I think about it.

I think it's like, take a fucking joke. Get over it. I heard about a science teacher who was teaching that God made the earth and God made everything and that if you believe anything else you're stupid. A Buddhist kid in the class got very upset about this, so the parents went in and are suing the school! The school is changing its curriculum! I thought, All right, go to the school and complain about it and then that's the end of it. But they're going to sue! No one can take a joke anymore. I know it certainly doesn't mean anything to win a Golden Globe, that's for sure. It's a meaningless event. The Hollywood Foreign Press Association is kidding you that something's happening. They're fucking ridiculous. There's nothing going on at all. It's 90 nobodies having a wank. Everybody's getting drunk, and everybody's sucking up to everybody. Boycott the fucking thing. Just say we're not going to play this silly game with you anymore. The Oscars are different. But it's showbiz. It's all showbiz. That makes me sound like I've got sour grapes or something, doesn't it?

Now we're in this thing where everything has to be analyzed and dissected behind the scenes. I personally never want to know how the guy pulls the rabbit out of the hat. I don't need people prying. Maybe I'm shy. I don't know. You look at a movie like Hannibal (2001), and even with all that make-up, it was the most free I've ever been. I think it's because I was hidden. On the other side of that coin, the most stressful role, the most painful to do, was Smiley in Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011). There's no mask. It's very exposed. You have to play boring in an interesting way. Not that Smiley is a boring character, but he's plain. Everything is dialed way down. You look at something like _The Professional_ or True Romance (1993) or even State of Grace (1990), and there's a kinetic sort of ferocity and a fire to those characters, where the volume is up. I understand why Alec Guinness had a kind of nervous breakdown leading up to the shooting of the original Tinker Tailor and wanted out.

I had a breakdown too, briefly. At first I passed on the movie, but then I couldn't stop thinking about it. Once I signed on, I thought, Fuck me! I can't do this. I can't pull this off. Everybody's going to see what a fake I am. This is the moment I get found out. Who does he think he is? He thinks he's Alec Guinness . Now, normally I agonize after a movie, not before. I'll walk down a street and suddenly I'm thinking of a scene I did two years ago. I'll go, "That's how I should have done that line." More and more, people in this culture are able to hide behind comedy and satire to say things we can't ordinarily say, because it's all too politically correct. Sometimes not getting a role ends up being the best thing. When a project turns out to be a disaster, you look at it and go, "Wow, I dodged a bullet there." [on his character Jackie from State of Grace (1990)] He's a sweetheart. I miss him. I just think he needs a good cuddle. [laughs] He's a very tormented soul, Jackie.

The reason I like characters like him is that they are bright, they're passionate, they have got the gift of gab. I mean, Jackie should go to drama school! [on his character Jackie from State of Grace (1990)] I'll tell you what's also interesting. On the surface of it, my language in the film is full of four-letter words, but that's mixed with a kind of poetic elegance. It's terribly subtle, but the tune, the lilt, is still very Irish even though it's New York slang. It gives a kind of pelt bristling beneath the cloth. [on "The King Of Cool" Steve McQueen] He just made acting look as effortless as breathing. Salary (3)

Question: Which actor, who appeared in the Harry Potter series of films, also had prominent roles in the films 'Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy' and 'Midnight Express'?
Answer: JOHN HURT